This year at Origins, aside from sitting at the War College table and wandering the Dealer’s Room, I spent an awful lot of time staring at the events list and mull over what to play. The problem with an event like Origins is that unless you come in with a clear cut plan, you run the risk of being overwhelmed. While Brian was able to break this deadlock and actually get to some games, I sat staring at that events list unable to reach a decision.

I finally broke the indecision when I saw a chance to play test a 4x Space Empire board game. If anything could convince me to commit to getting out there and playing a game, it was the opportunity to conquer foes across the galaxy. The game Galactic Emperor from CrossCut Games was still in development (and being shopped around to manufacturers). I was able to jump into the last open slot for the game and we were given the run down on play by designer Adam West (I was clearly playing with some polite people – it wasn’t until the end that someone commented).

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Galactic Emperor begins with an open board aside from each player’s starting system and as the game progresses new tiles are put down to build the map out. Additionally the variable turn phases (explained below) help to create layers and layers of strategy in the game. I gambled in the game on making a meteoric rise to power, but succeeded in only painting a very large target on myself (which was a risk I recognized but gambled against anyway).

Despite my drastic loss in the game, I was impressed enough to set up an interview with Adam West on both Galactic Emperor and on designing and developing games without having a major publisher.

ACG: I was lucky enough to have a chance to sit down for a game of Galactic Emperor at Origins this year, can you give our readers an overview of the game?

Adam: Galactic Emperor is a fast paced empire-building game of exploration, conflict and struggle for control of the galaxy. Each player controls a home planet, a section of space, and for a time, share the power of the galactic throne. During the struggle for control, the central sun of the galaxy is heading toward collapse – sure to leave a vacuum of leadership that must be filled. In the end, only one all-powerful Emperor can once again rule the galaxy!

The game plays over several rounds, and each round has a number of roles chosen equal to the number of players. There are different types of roles: Regent, Explorer, Industrialist, Merchant, Scientist, Engineer, Marine, and Politician. All players get a turn to act during a role. Players discover planets, gain resources, build ships, and attack space fleets in a desperate effort to grind foes into cosmic dust! The player with the most victory points at the end of the game wins, becoming the ultimate Galactic Emperor!

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